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The setting for my brief (but memorable) encounter was Montreal - a romantic place, often called "The City of Travellers." I was visiting town for a friend's party, when a small group of young men appeared - one of them with a face that had distinct features, dark hair, and who had a wiry frame. At some point, we met in the kitchen and immediately hit it off - talking of work, but also, delving into philosophy. We instantly had a connection in which we could express very abstract ideas, and in humour, we analysed the party together. It was as though we had taken each other outside of it, and time seemed to stop. Later that evening I read him some poems I had written on my trip to the city and I was delighted to see how evidently moved and taken aback he was at what I had written.

Before the evening closed, we were sitting on the couch together when he showed me a bracelet his aunt had given him, and told me of Columbia (where he was from). As he showed it to me, he moved closer and closer to me in silence - and it was then that I realised he was interested in me. I was completely shocked at first - and found a way to wish him goodbye without going further. That evening, thinking of what had happened, I realised that I actually did share his feelings.

A week passed - I had left town and returned, deciding to meet with him again and taking the opportunity to get to know him better. We spent hours by the St.Lawrence River, drinking Coronas and speaking of our pasts, appreciating the landscape. We seemed to bask in each other's company, and energized each other. He lead me to a watchtower and we looked at the harbour together. Then, when he discovered it was my birthday, took me to Mount Royale (a mountain in the middle of the city) at night. We clamoured up the steep hills, through the trees, hand in hand - with no light to guide us - when we found a small clearing. There, we sat and admired the luminous grid of the city extend beyond us. He gave me a cookie, and sang me "Feliz Cumpleanos" in his mother tongue. I felt honoured and blessed.

On a rock elsewhere on the mountain, we held each other and watched shooting stars - he told me he wasn't usually forward with anyone, and that I brought out a different side of him. We descended the mountain that evening and were inseperable for the rest of my visit. He expressed what a rut he was in at his work, how embittered he had become - and how this experience had shaken him temporarily out of this state and into one of joy.

Then our magical weekend ended, and I had to return home - and he, to work at a call centre. We stood at the bus terminal and he gallantly kissed my hand (and to my chagrin, me - before a bus full of people haha). He looked at me with a large, dumfounded smile, and shrugged, as if to say, "our time together was unbelievable - what can we say?"

In the following weeks, we spoke over the phone - and initially, we enthusiastically planned to see each other again. But as time went on, he spoke less of meeting again and our conversations became shorter. When the time came for us to meet again, it seemed that he had forgotten and had no intention of visiting. I was out with friends at the time, and decided to leave prematurely - and walked home alone that evening in tears.

Upon our last meeting, I saught him out and we travelled from Montreal to my hometown together. It seemed the chemistry was no longer there, and he had returned to his embittered state. Before we parted for good, we stood in the drizzling rain and held each other for one last time - long and tenderly, as we had once done. I stood and watched him walk away and never look back.

Years have passed since, and I am mainly left with the positive feelings of the experience. Yet, I do wonder - was it poor circumstances that drove us apart? Or, would it have happened anyway, even if we had lived in the same city? Who knows. I have yet to meet anyone whose feelings for me have not changed after a short period of time. It can be hard on a sensitive heart, and I think at some point, I may decide to stop dating all together. Does anyone else's love life look like a string of failed commitments, or is it just me? I welcome feedback/support.

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